They were picked from a list of 23 candidates for this year's Ballon d'Or. ...
07:21 PM, Nov 29, 2012
London: Cristiano Ronaldo would always be welcomed back to play for Manchester United but manager Alex Ferguson doubts he will return because the Real Madrid man is now "unbuyable". The Portuguese forward, 27, joined United for 12 million pounds from Sporting Lisbon in 2003 and left for Real Madrid for a world record fee of 80 million in July 2009. Coincidentally, he will be playing again in Manchester on Wednesday...
06:35 PM, Nov 18, 2012
Barcelona: Lionel Messi netted his eighth brace of the season and created a third goal to steer Barcelona to a 3-1 win over a feisty Real Zaragoza on Saturday as the Spanish league leaders kept alive their club-record start. Unbeaten Barcelona's 11th victory in 12 rounds maintained its eight-point lead over Real Madrid after the defending champions thrashed Athletic Bilbao 5-1 ahead of their critical Champions League trip to Manchester...
03:29 AM, Nov 18, 2012
Madrid: Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho brushed aside striker Karim Benzema's grouse that he is not playing much first team football this season. In an interview published in French paper, L'Equipe, Frenchman Benzema said he was spending more time on the subs' bench than on the pitch, reports Xinhua. When asked about his striker's comments during his pre-game press conference ahead of Real Madrid's Primera Liga game away to Levante,...
02:06 PM, Nov 11, 2012
CNN correspondent Pedro Pinto talks to the Portugal and Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo who, along with Lionel Messi, is one of the favourites to win the award this year. ...
08:43 AM, Nov 09, 2012
Madrid: Mesut Ozil netted an 89th-minute free kick Tuesday as Real Madrid salvaged a 2-2 draw against an attack-minded Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League's toughest group. Ozil seemed to surprise goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller by taking the free kick instead of Cristiano Ronaldo, and his left-footed shot snuck in off the near post. That settled a game in which the visitors attacked continuously in the first half to go into...
03:57 AM, Nov 07, 2012
Zurich: Lionel Messi is in the running for a fourth consecutive FIFA world player of the year award after being selected Monday among the 23 candidates for the 2012 prize. Messi and Barcelona teammates Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta, Gerard Pique and Xavi Hernandez are on the Ballon d'Or shortlist, while archrivals Real Madrid lead the way with six nominees, including last year's runner-up Cristiano Ronaldo. Earlier on Monday, Messi was...
08:53 AM, Oct 30, 2012
Madrid: With Lionel Messi as a three-time goal-taker and Cesc Fabregas as a three-time goal-maker, 10-man Barcelona won a wild 5-4 shootout at Deportivo La Coruna in the Spanish league on Saturday. Also, Cristiano Ronaldo helped Real Madrid labor to a 2-0 win over Celta Vigo. Fabregas set up Jordi Alba's opener before passing for Messi to score twice more as Barcelona roared to 3-0 just 18 minutes in. But...
03:48 AM, Oct 21, 2012
Madrid: Cristiano Ronaldo's 15th goal of the season helped Real Madrid labor to a 2-0 victory over Celta Vigo in the Spanish league before their midweek Champions League visit to Borussia Dortmund. Ronaldo scored from the penalty spot in the 67th minute at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium after Gonzalo Higuain opened for the hosts in the 11th with a lofted shot from well outside the area that looped over goalkeeper Sergio...
12:13 AM, Oct 21, 2012
Paris: Hit by injuries and reeling from a surprise 1-0 loss to Japan, with their strikers struggling to score and a patched-up defense looking far from secure, France have enough to worry about without even thinking about Spain's quality ahead of their World Cup qualifier on Tuesday. Both teams won their opening two qualifiers to share the lead in Group I. But while Spain cruised into top gear with a...
07:11 PM, Oct 15, 2012
Lisbon: When Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo picks up his 100th cap against Northern Ireland on Tuesday, he will reflect on a career which started in central defence and was marked by early shyness before an explosion of attacking flair made him one of soccer's greatest players. "It was on August 20th, 2003, against Kazakhstan, that I put on our national shirt for the first time. It was one of the most...
06:25 PM, Oct 15, 2012
Moscow: Alexander Kerzhakov scored early as Russia edged out Portugal 1-0 to earn their third consecutive win at the start of their World Cup qualifying campaign under Fabio Capello on Friday. Kerzhakov struck in the sixth minute after breaking clear on goal following some quick one-touch passing featuring his Zenit St Petersburg team mates Viktor Faizulin and Roman Shirokov. Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo was a constant threat at the other...
09:58 PM, Oct 12, 2012
Lisbon: It would be a crime if Cristiano Ronaldo lost out to Lionel Messi for the 2012 Ballon d'Or, his Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho said on Friday. Mourinho hit back at remarks by Barcelona coach's Tito Vilanova last weekend that Messi, who has won the award for the past three years, was "the best (player) in the world by a long way". "When someone with the same responsibility as...
06:03 PM, Oct 12, 2012
Lisbon: Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo, recovering from a shoulder injury, is more likely to feature in Friday's Group F World Cup qualifier away to Russia than Pepe who is trying to shake off a thigh injury, according to the midfielder. The influential Real Madrid pair returned to light training on Wednesday after sustaining injuries during Sunday's 2-2 'Clasico' draw at Barcelona. "The match against Barcelona was very tiring. Cristiano has...
06:35 PM, Oct 10, 2012
Barcelona: Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were both in superb form as Barcelona and Real Madrid played out an enthralling 2-2 draw at Camp Nou in the first Liga Clasico of this season. Despite coming as just the seventh fixture of the season, the match was touted as having a potentially huge impact on the final Liga outcome. With Madrid in need of a win, Ronaldo got them off to...
01:05 AM, Oct 08, 2012
Barcelona: Even though the season has barely begun, Real Madrid's classic meeting with Barcelona on Sunday is a must-win game for the defending Spanish champion, which visits Camp Nou already trailing the Catalan club by eight points. Barcelona is perfect through the first six rounds and Tito Vilanova's squad has a chance to mark the club's best league start ever with a victory over its fierce rival. After its poor...
12:42 PM, Oct 05, 2012
Amsterdam: Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick and Karim Benzema smashed in a spectacular overhead kick on Wednesday to give Real Madrid a 4-1 victory over Ajax in the Champions League. The win sent Madrid to the top of Group D and left Ajax pointless in its first two European outings this season. "We played a very good match. Benzema, Kaka and Ronaldo all played well," Madrid coach Jose Mourinho said....
03:33 AM, Oct 04, 2012
Barcelona: Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat trick to power Real Madrid to a 5-1 home win over Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday, as the defending champions strung together back-to-back Spanish league victories for the first time this season. Real will head into next weekend's "clasico" match at Camp Nou eight points behind leaders Barcelona, but at least Jose Mourinho's side is showing strong signs it has recovered its dominating form...
01:32 AM, Oct 01, 2012
Madrid: Real Madrid's win over Manchester City was just the first hurdle as the Spanish champions return to league play looking to confirm their recovery from a poor start to the season. Real's memorable 3-2 victory over City on Tuesday certainly provided a morale-boost for a team in disarray domestically, already eight points behind Spanish leader Barcelona after only four games. Real have a short trip across town Sunday to...
11:38 AM, Sep 21, 2012
